Easter Seals provides exceptional services to ensure that all people with disabilities or special needs and their families have equal opportunities to live, learn, work and play in their communities.

Thursday, May 22, 2014

Easter Seals Parents

Parents are among the strongest people we know. Sometimes
it’s hard to believe all the unconditional love, support and care one person
can give to another. This is why parents with special needs children are so
important to us! We want to take the time out to mention one of the incredible
parents we have been lucky enough to work with.

Shaquita’s Story: Shaquita Davis discovered she was
expecting beautiful twin girls at five months pregnant. This happy news would
prove to be short-lived however, as the doctor later informed her that there
were apparent complications. Shaquita’s twins had what is known as twin-to-twin
transfusion syndrome. The girls were developing in a shared placenta sack with
abnormal blood vessels. In her case, one twin was not receiving as many
nutrients as the other, placing all three lives in jeopardy. The possibility of
one child thriving while the other developed heart defects or grew malnourished
was looming.

As her pregnancy progressed, doctors told Shaquita that the
only way of ensuring the survival of her twins was to have emergency surgery.
Concerned for her girls, she made an immediate decision to undergo surgery;
even if it meant endangering her own life. After hours in the OR, the procedure
was successful and Shaquita’s beautiful identical twin girls were born. Their
names, Truste’ and B’Lyeve, are reminiscent of their inspiring journey into
life. Truste’ was born with a cleft lip palate and had corrective surgery.B’Lyeve defied the odds and survived!

Shaquita came to the Easter Seals Murray Child Development
Center after one twin was diagnosed with physical and developmental delays. Not
wanting to separate her girls, she enrolled Truste’ and B’Lyeve in our program
as it was the only place that would accept them both. Shaquita believes this is
the perfect place for her 9-month old children to grow together and support
each other, especially though their vital developmental stages.